ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. clip — for paper
  3. content — happy
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. track — a song
  6. track — a path
  7. track — to keep track
  8. staff — a stick
  9. court — for sport
  10. content — the amount
  11. game — a match
  12. game — wild animals
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. staff — employees
  17. vault — a safe
  18. staff — employees
  19. court — of law
  20. clip — to cut
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. court — of a king
  24. clip — a video

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com